Checking in on some overlooked deep-leaguers

By Al Melchior | Data Analyst

May 12, 2014 3:47 PM ET

On Monday's Who We're Adding/Dropping segment on Fantasy Baseball Today, Scott White, Adam Aizer and I reviewed our waiver and FAAB moves for the week, and each of us did some housekeeping in our deeper leagues. As you might expect, none of the players that we picked up for those deeper mixed and single-league formats is currently owned in as many as 20 percent of the leagues on CBSSports.com. What was notable to me, though, was that a few of those pickups are players who could become popular in a wider swath of leagues very soon.

Frankly, just because he is a top prospect, I figured there would be more interest in Rougned Odor . He's holding down second base for the Rangers until Jurickson Profar is ready to come off the DL, so maybe it's his limited shelf life that is leaving many owners unenthused. Odor may not be worth much of an investment if you're in a FAAB league, but he's a worthwhile waiver claim in deeper leagues, as he could represent a short-term upgrade over the likes of DJ LeMahieu, Scooter Gennett and Alberto Callaspo, all of whom are more widely owned.

Rafael Montero is likely to have a much longer-term impact than Odor, yet he is currently owned in only 15 percent of our leagues. Granted, he is not in the majors yet, but his callup could be imminent. Even if Montero starts out in a relief role, he stands a strong chance to be in the Mets' rotation later in the season. With a 3.67 ERA and 1.15 WHIP, Montero is holding his own in the Pacific Coast League, even more so than fellow Mets prospect Noah Syndergaard, yet the latter is owned in nearly three times as many leagues as the former.

Finally, there is Chase Anderson, who is starting to gain some popularity on the basis of his strong major league debut for the Diamondbacks. The 26-year-old performed well in 2012 at Double-A Mobile and in the Arizona Fall League, but a triceps injury compromised his 2013 campaign at Triple-A Reno. Anderson has rebounded with a vengeance this season, and given the difficulties the Diamondbacks have had getting reliable starting pitching, he could become a staple in their rotation.

None of these three players should be pursued in standard mixed leagues as of now, but owners in deeper mixed leagues should take a closer look at this trio of potentially useful additions.